A haptic display is a device used to convert visible images into a form that can be perceived through touch. A vibratory haptic display is a device which does this through an array of vibrating elements which correspond to visual pixels. Current approaches for haptic displays utilize either vibration motors or electrode patches. These current-technology vibratory haptic displays are limited in resolution by two primary factors: (1) limitations on how small vibration motors or electrode patches can be made; and (2) the necessity of using one pin of a microcontroller to control the amount of vibration of each motor, or the amount of charge on each electrode patch. These requirements limit the number of vibration motors or electrodes which can be controlled by a single microcontroller or placed within a single haptic display, resulting in the limitation of low-resolution of the displays. The low resolution of vibratory haptic displays severely limits their effectiveness. Accordingly, improved vibratory haptic displays are desirable.